Mark Your Calendars: Pats Dates!

We Boston sports fans are a funny bunch. While we cheer on the Patriots' hard play through those cold winter months, we're busy dishing, dissecting and debating the Red Sox hot stove season. And yet today, as we count down the hours until Dice-K takes the mound at Fenway, we can't get the Pats off our minds.

Why? The new season's schedule is out, friends. New schedule.

While we know that many will want to investigate the season's prosects, to see when Belichick, Brady and the rest will be facing down the various teams (*cough*PEYTON*cough*), we'll quickly break it down for you:

-- The August pre-season includes matchups with Tampa Bay, Tennessee, Carolina and the Giants (the first televised game is slated for week 3, at Carolina).
-- Regular season kicks off at Meadowlands against the Jets. Sept. 9, 1 p.m.
-- Home opener against San Diego on Sept. 16.
-- Home games: SD (Sept. 16), Buffalo (Sept. 23), Cleveland (Oct. 7), Washington (Oct. 28), Philadelphia (Nov. 25), Pittsburgh (Dec. 9), NY Jets (Dec. 16) and Miami (Dec. 23).
-- Brady/Peyton Manning Showdown: Nov. 4 at Indianapolis.

The downside? Still no word on when tickets for the season are going to go on sale. Boo.

Photo from the 2004 Pats victory parade from flickr user Kingdafy